Democrats Promise Action on a Bill This Fall

WASHINGTON -- Democratic congressional leaders on Thursday promised action this fall on legislation to overhaul the nation's health-care system, as partisan tensions simmered a day after President Barack Obama's appeal for progress on the matter.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) said he hopes legislation can be sent to the White House "well before Thanksgiving." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) added she is "confident the president will sign a bill this year," despite lingering divisions among Democrats on key issues, such as whether to create a government-run health plan to compete with private insurers.

ENLARGE

President Barack Obama greets voters after delivering remarks about a health-care overhaul in Washington on Thursday.
Reuters

"It's the most important initiative any of us will be a part of in Congress," Ms. Pelosi said. "Members know their responsibility."

Republican leaders, meanwhile, said Mr. Obama had done little to build support across party lines, despite his praise of some high-profile Republicans and a pledge to take their ideas into account.

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R., Ohio) was dismissive, calling the hourlong speech before a joint session of Congress "just another lecture." Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl of Arizona said he found the president's remarks "partisan, uninformative, disingenuous, and not likely to encourage those who have honest disagreements with him to be able to work toward some kind of common solution."

In his speech, Mr. Obama endorsed in more specific terms than he has before the outline of legislation that House and Senate Democrats have been crafting for months.

The president, like congressional Democrats, wants a sweeping bill that would create a new national marketplace for individuals and small businesses to buy health insurance, and bar certain insurance-company practices such as denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. Mr. Obama also backed the idea of requiring most people to buy insurance.

In contrast, Republicans leaders have called for more-targeted action, such as helping cash-strapped small businesses get insurance and limiting medical malpractice lawsuits. They said the Democrats' plans are too expensive and will lead to a government takeover of health care.

Mr. Obama left open whether his proposal would include a publicly run insurance plan, and Ms. Pelosi signaled flexibility Thursday on the issue. Asked whether the public plan is non-negotiable, the speaker replied, "I don't think you ever go into a negotiation saying something is non-negotiable." House Democratic leaders are holding closed-door meetings with the rank and file this week aimed at bridging differences.

Democratic leaders are putting a renewed focus on party unity, especially in the Senate. Democrats have 59 votes in the Senate, counting the two independents who typically caucus with the party. If all 59 fall in line and draw one Republican to their side, they would have the 60 votes needed to shut down any opposition filibuster.

Democrats could also invoke a rarely used parliamentary procedure that allows legislation to move forward on a simple majority vote. But doing so would almost certainly inflame partisan tensions on Capitol Hill. "That's our second choice," said Mr. Reid.

Democrats are trying to get a handful of Republicans, such as Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine, to cross party lines. Ms. Snowe has been a key figure in Senate Finance Committee negotiations over a more moderate health bill that would expand insurance coverage through a network of nonprofit cooperatives, rather than creating a public plan.

"We're working on very narrow margins here," said Mr. Reid.

Ms. Snowe said she was disappointed that Mr. Obama hadn't taken the public option off the table, but said she was "pleased that many of the other elements he discussed dovetail with those we continue to work on" in bipartisan Finance Committee talks.

Mr. Obama met Thursday with a group of centrist Democrats, many of whom have concerns with the proposed public plan and want more aggressive efforts to control the growth of health-care costs.

At the same time, White House officials fanned out to work the Capitol, pressing Democrats to unify around the Obama health-care vision. White House aides said Vice President Joe Biden would work to round up votes in the Senate, as he did in the final push to pass the $787 billion stimulus bill in February. "It's all hands on deck," said one aide.

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.